EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has learned that Asger Hussain is joining Lee Daniels Entertainment as SVP of Television, overseeing all aspects of development and production.
14.04.2022 - 20:31 / deadline.com
The candy man is coming to Hulu! The streamer has ordered eight episodes of a limited series about Sammy Davis, Jr. from Lee Daniels and 20th Television. It’s based on the Wil Haygood book, “In Black and White: The Life of Sammy Davis, Jr.”
Multi-hyphenate performer Elijah Kelley will portray the title role, having starred in NBC’s “The Wiz Live!” and New Line’s Hairspray. He’s previously collaborated with Daniels on Lee Daniels’ The Butler and Fox’s Star.
Here’s the official logline: “Sammy Davis, Jr. rose from childhood stardom on the vaudeville stage to become one of the most famous African American entertainers of the 1950s and ’60s (and the only Black member of Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack). At the same time, he spent most of his career surrounded by controversy and ridicule–over his affairs with white film stars, his 1960 marriage to Swedish actress May Britt, his conversion to Judaism, his closeness to the Kennedys (and later Richard Nixon), and his problems with alcohol and drugs.”
Daniels will also direct the first two episodes. Kelley will also produce and collaborate on some of the show’s original music. Co-EP is Thomas Westfall, while Haygood will produce. Marc Toberoff is also an EP on the project.
A production location or start date has not been set.
Kelley, who also starred in BET’s The New Edition Story, is represented by Generational Entertainment and Ginsburg Daniels Kallis.
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EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has learned that Asger Hussain is joining Lee Daniels Entertainment as SVP of Television, overseeing all aspects of development and production.
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Clayton Davis Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official awards predictions for the upcoming Oscars and Emmys ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis; Awards Circuit Column, a weekly analysis dissecting the trends and contenders by television editor Michael Schneider (for Emmys) and Davis (for Oscars); Awards Circuit Podcast, a weekly interview series with talent and an expert roundtable discussion; and Awards Circuit Video analyzes various categories and contenders by Variety's leading awards pundits. Variety's unmatched coverage gives its readership unbeatable exposure in print and online, as well as provide inside reports on all the contenders in this year's awards season races.
After directing “The United States Vs. Billie Holiday,” Lee Daniels is returning to the world of period biopics with a new dramatic series focused on singer/actor Sammy Davis Jr., one of the most charismatic and accessible black entertainers of the last century.
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Joe Otterson TV ReporterLee Daniels’ long-gestating Sammy Davis Jr. biographical series has been ordered at Hulu, with Elijah Kelley set to play the lead role.The untitled series has received an eight-episode order at the streamer.
Clayton Davis Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official awards predictions for the upcoming Oscars and Emmys ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis; Awards Circuit Column, a weekly analysis dissecting the trends and contenders by television editor Michael Schneider (for Emmys) and Davis (for Oscars); Awards Circuit Podcast, a weekly interview series with talent and an expert roundtable discussion; and Awards Circuit Video analyzes various categories and contenders by Variety's leading awards pundits. Variety's unmatched coverage gives its readership unbeatable exposure in print and online, as well as provide inside reports on all the contenders in this year's awards season races.
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Clayton Davis Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official awards predictions for the upcoming Oscars and Emmys ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis; Awards Circuit Column, a weekly analysis dissecting the trends and contenders by television editor Michael Schneider (for Emmys) and Davis (for Oscars); Awards Circuit Podcast, a weekly interview series with talent and an expert roundtable discussion; and Awards Circuit Video analyzes various categories and contenders by Variety's leading awards pundits. Variety's unmatched coverage gives its readership unbeatable exposure in print and online, as well as provide inside reports on all the contenders in this year's awards season races.
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